Israel and Hungary Establish Reciprocal, Interest Sections

March 15, 1988

TEL AVIV (Mar. 14)

Israel and Hungary established interest sections in Budapest and Tel Aviv respectively Monday. It is the lowest level of diplomatic representation, but nevertheless marks a resumption of diplomatic ties broken by Hungary during the 1967 Six-Day War.

A Hungarian representative, Jerri Genish, handed his letter of appointment to Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres in Jerusalem, while Shlomo Merom, an Israeli diplomat with the rank of ambassador, did the same at the Foreign Ministry in Budapest.

Israel’s Budapest office will operate from the Swiss Embassy there. The Hungarian section in Israel will be located at the Swedish Embassy in Tel Aviv.

Genish told Israel Radio that the opening of a Hungarian mission here was a step toward full diplomatic ties. He said that event would be hastened if Israel entered into peace negotiations with its Arab neighbors and the Palestinians.

The freeze between Israel and the Communist bloc countries seems to be thawing. Israel and Poland established interest sections in Warsaw and Tel Aviv last year. A Soviet consular mission has been in Israel since last June and an Israeli mission of similar rank will be going to Moscow in about three weeks.

But Israel and the Soviet Union have not reestablished ties, even on the interests section level. Israel has full diplomatic relations with only one Eastern bloc nation: Romania.